Backcountry skiing

Michael Hopper says his dog, Rowdy, almost always accompanied him when he went backcountry skiing – like this 2010 outing in the Eastern Alaska Range near Black Rapids.
Credit Mike Hopper

Backcountry skiing comes in many varieties. On the next show, we’re looking at two extremes. On one end are the alpine daredevils who look for the hardest, steepest, most dangerous lines. They admit they ski places where one bad turn could mean death. On the other end are the touring skiers exploring our glorious mountain scenery by the most practical means available, using wide, sturdy skis for long distance travel. These two ways of looking at skiing are for different personalities and different kinds of athletes with different goals, but the area around Anchorage is prime for either option. We’re going to start with ski alpinism in Chugach State park, with a couple of daring skiers. Then, in the second half, I’ll talk with Adam Varrier. He is a former olympian in Nordic skiing, but now gets a lot of enjoyment out of touring the backcountry.

LISTEN NOW

 

HOST: Charles Wohlforth

GUESTS:  

  • Mat Brunton- Skier
  • Brian Harder – Skier
  • Adam Verrier- a volunteer assistant coach for the UAA Ski Team and former olympian

LINKS:

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BROADCAST: Thursday, February 09, 2017. 2:00 pm – 3:00 p.m. AKT

REPEAT BROADCAST:  Thursday, February 16, 2017. 8:00 – 9:00 p.m. AKT

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cwohlforth (at) alaskapublic (dot) org | About Charles

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